Heath Ledger is Dead
Very sad breaking news: 28 year old actor Heath Ledger was found dead this afternoon in his New York City apartment.
TMZ reports:
He was found dead in his bed in one of his residences in Soho by his housekeeper at 3:35 PM ET today. Law enforcement sources tell TMZ they believe it was not a crime.
The 28-year-old actor has a two year old daughter with former fiancee Michelle Williams -- they separated in September, 2007. He plays the Joker in the upcoming Batman film, "The Dark Knight."
There have been intimations that drugs were involved. Updates as information comes in....
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Jesus Christ, that's awful.
Posted by: disnazzio | January 22, 2008 at 05:07 PM
Wow. I just heard about this. So sad. What a waste, if drugs were involved.
Posted by: Suzy Q | January 22, 2008 at 05:09 PM
i wasn't a huge fan or anything, but i'm still in fucking shock.
Posted by: sweetney | January 22, 2008 at 05:10 PM
Latest update: pills found near the bed and he was in cardiac arrest when the EMT's got there.
Posted by: Cheryl | January 22, 2008 at 05:13 PM
...and good actor friends were just mentioning how he was one of the under-rated actors of his age...
Posted by: jamiegp | January 22, 2008 at 05:15 PM
When I saw this on MSNBC I couldn't believe what I was reading. Totally shocking. The most shocking death in a really, really long time. That poor little girl.
Posted by: Sils | January 22, 2008 at 05:16 PM
that poor baby girl of his. What a sad ending.
Posted by: Amy H | January 22, 2008 at 05:17 PM
I audibly gasped when I found out. I still can't believe it. It just... Doesn't compute.
Celeb-betches: Can you think of any indication he was into any drugs? I can't recall a single story about him messing with any of that...
Posted by: teh Duchess | January 22, 2008 at 05:19 PM
I have to say that I am absolutely shocked. He was a terrific actor. I had to read the article on TMZ, and then Perez Hilton, several times over just to believe it.
God...his poor daughter...
Posted by: jenn | January 22, 2008 at 05:20 PM
This is part of the rumor mill, however, I read the following: "pills strewn all around him, according to police."
Suicide? I hope not. I really, really hope not.
Posted by: mihow | January 22, 2008 at 05:23 PM
Already reported. My bad. Did they mention that it was Mary Kate Olsen's apartment building?
Posted by: mihow | January 22, 2008 at 05:28 PM
So sad. I love "10 Things I Hate About You".
He could've gone so far with his career.
Posted by: vickie | January 22, 2008 at 05:29 PM
CNN said at 5:45p EST that the police say OTC sleeping pills were found next to the bed.
Is "Dark Knight" completely done? Heath was just in the entertainment news recently with all the publicity for his Joker. How sad.
Posted by: MizJawnson | January 22, 2008 at 05:49 PM
Oh my god. I'm as shocked and saddened by this as I have been by any celebrity news in a long time. I have always adored Heath Ledger. ("10 Things" was awesome) I just can't believe it. This is so awful. :(
Posted by: Marilyn | January 22, 2008 at 05:53 PM
updates from http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/ at 6pm:
Signs pointed to a suicide or an accidental overdose, police sources said...
At 3:31 p.m., a masseuse arrived the fourth-floor apartment of the building, at 421 Broome Street in SoHo, for an appointment with Mr. Ledger, the police said. The masseuse was let in to the home by a housekeeper, who then knocked on the door of the bedroom Mr. Ledger was in. When no one answered, the housekeeper and the masseuse opened the bedroom and found Mr. Ledger naked and unconscious on a bed, with sleeping pills — both prescription medication and nonprescription — on a night table. They moved his body to the floor and attempted to revive him, but he did not respond. They immediately called the authorities.
The police said they did not suspect foul play. Ellen Borakove, a spokeswoman for the office of the city’s chief medical examiner, Dr. Charles S. Hirsch, said that employees of the office were at the apartment and that an autopsy would be conducted on Wednesday.
Police officials initially said that the apartment was owned by the actress Mary-Kate Olsen. They said they believed Ms. Olsen, 21, was in California and that Mr. Ledger had been living in her apartment. Ms. Olsen attended the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, for the premiere of “The Wackness,” a film in which she stars with the actor Ben Kingsley. It was not clear where she went after the film screening.
A representative of Ms. Olsen said this afternoon that the apartment did not belong to the actress. “It is not her apartment,” said Annette Wolf, a publicist for Ms. Olsen. “She does not own the apartment. She has never owned the apartment. She and her sister have an apartment in New York City but they are not in this building.”
Posted by: sweetney | January 22, 2008 at 06:10 PM
Oh my gosh...how terrible. I loooved his performance in Brokeback Mountain and it seemed as if he had such a great career in front of him. Soooo sad (and poor Matilda)
Posted by: veronica | January 22, 2008 at 06:12 PM
I literally was like WHAT!?! I can't believe this. Totally not someone you would expect this to happen with and it just goes to show that you never know what some people are really dealing with privately. My prayers go to his family and his baby girl. How terribly sad.
Posted by: Sarah | January 22, 2008 at 07:57 PM
I keep waiting to see this headline for Brintey...
Posted by: Alison | January 22, 2008 at 08:02 PM
This is a tragic ending for a young person with such a promising career. He appeared to have such a full life with many people that loved him. He will be missed and remembered by so many for a very long time. God bless Matilda and may positive memories of her dad live with her forever.
Posted by: cheryl | January 23, 2008 at 11:41 PM